


A Quiet Moment

by MadameCristal



Series: Adventures in Wonderland [3]
Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: F/M, Future Fic, Heavy Angst, Hunter Stiles Stilinski, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-09
Updated: 2019-12-09
Packaged: 2021-03-07 14:21:15
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 835
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21736819
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MadameCristal/pseuds/MadameCristal
Summary: "But for this moment she allows herself a small smile, picturing the little boys dirty from head to toe and happy – a moment that can last forever deep in her heart. "
Relationships: Chris Argent/Stiles Stilinski, Melissa McCall/Sheriff Stilinski
Series: Adventures in Wonderland [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1566655
Comments: 4
Kudos: 33





	A Quiet Moment

**Author's Note:**

> This is the end to my sad little alternate reality future series. Thanks for sticking around with me. I know it's been sad and bittersweet... But I had an ending in mind, and I wanted to put it out there.
> 
> I know that it's canon that the Sheriff's name is "Noah". But it was "John" in my mind for SO LONG that I stuck with that.
> 
> Disclaimer: This is all un-beta'd - all mistakes are on me! Also, I don't own Teen Wolf or the characters; I'm just playing in the sandbox with them.

Sheriff John Stilinski arrives home at the same time he does most nights. He grabs the mail and heads into his house, as is his routine. He can hear Melissa rummaging around in the kitchen and goes to join her, perhaps even to help with dinner. None of this is out of the ordinary. In fact, after all these years, it’s to be expected. 

“How do you feel about pizza? Because I think I’ve misplaced the spaghetti sauce,” Melissa asks as he enters the kitchen. He smiles and holds up the small grocery bag.

“I’ll take full responsibility for forgetting it was on the list. But I’m also good with pizza if you’d rather not cook,” he shrugs sheepishly. She takes the bag and laughs. 

“Pizza it is,” she replies, dialing the number and ordering. His focus returns to the mail as he comes to a rather large manila envelope. It looks like it has taken a beating to arrive at his door, a cluster of stamps and foreign postmarks adorn the package cover. There is no return address listed. Curious, he opens the package. There is a note on top of a book. 

_He’d have wanted you to have this. I’m sorry._

He frowns, flipping the note over, looking for a signature. There is none. He pulls the small book out and discards the envelope onto the table. The front cover reads: _Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland_. He hasn’t seen a copy of this book since Claudia had passed away decades ago. A strange feeling of foreboding settles over him as he opens the cover. Inside lays an inscription he was desperately hoping not to see: _For my little boy, may you one day have many adventures of your own. Until then, let’s take a trip with Alice down the rabbit hole. All my love. Mom_

The book slips from his fingers and lands on the floor with a crash. Melissa looks over, startled as she hangs up the phone. John Stilinski does not make a sound. She retrieves the book from the floor and reads over the note. She grabs the envelope, dumping it over the kitchen table and shaking. Pieces of sand fall out and a picture that must have been stuck to the inside. There wasn’t much to the photo – just a man standing on the beach, waves crashing in the background, hair wet as if he had only recently come in from the water. He was squinting, perhaps at the bright sun, and was mid-laugh, surely from something the photographer had done. He was older – much older than the last time she or John had seen him. But there was no mistaking that this was Stiles Stilinski. She flips the picture over and finds one single additional detail – _Thailand_ – in that same handwriting as the note. And with that her heart breaks for the second time, breaks for the teenage boy that had run away, for the man that has apparently passed away, and for his father that is currently sitting at their kitchen table silently crying. She wraps her arm around his shoulders and pulls him close to her torso, letting him grieve. She feels her own tears slide down her face and knows they are landing on the top of her husband’s head, but she can’t bring herself to wipe them away. She can feel the rumbling against her skin as John clears his throat.

“At least now I know,” he murmurs, and she can hear the sadness in his voice. Perhaps there was a bit of relief in there as well, for finally knowing after all these years. She hands him the photo, and he gives a watery smile. “He was a good-looking man, huh?” he says without looking up at her. She kisses his cheek, lips meeting stubble.

“He was. And he wasn’t alone. Someone cared enough to make him smile on a beach in Thailand and knew him well enough to send this book to you. It’s not the future any parent imagines, but he had someone. I’m sorry he’s gone,” she whispers, as if any words too loud will break this moment. John pulls her into his lap, and she closes her eyes. Somewhere in the back of her mind she can still see Stiles and Scott, six years old and playing in the sandbox. 

And it won’t last forever, this quiet moment. Any minute the pizza will arrive, and their life will go on, without their children. But for this moment she allows herself a small smile, picturing the little boys dirty from head to toe and happy – a moment that can last forever deep in her heart. She can feel John’s cheek, wet with tears, on her shoulder and she pulls herself together as the moment passes for her. Her quiet memory remains deep in her heart for another day. She will be strong for him, just as he had been strong for her. And they’ll get through this. They always do. 

**FIN**

**Author's Note:**

> Kudos and comments bring sunshine to my soul!
> 
> Come play with me on [tumblr](http://madamecristal.tumblr.com/)! ♥


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